1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to systems for feeding one or more animals, and, in particular, to a system for feeding birds.
2. Description of Related Art
Bird feeders are known in the art. Conventional bird feeders include a container for bird feed and are typically used to attract wild birds. To use these conventional bird feeders, a person places bird feed within the bird feeder's container and typically places the bird feeder outdoors. The person then may watch birds eat the bird feed from the bird feeder.
As the birds eat, a substantial amount of the bird feed may fall to the ground. For example, perch feeding birds (such as buntings, bluebirds, finches, and chickadees) prefer to eat when perched at the bird feeder, but they can inadvertently drop some of the bird feed while eating at a conventional bird feeder. Further, ground feeding birds (such as native sparrows, house sparrows, and juncos) prefer eating bird feed off the ground and thus will deliberately cast the bird feed from the bird feeder onto the ground for eating.
While the birds may eat some of the fallen bird feed, much of the fallen bird feed often remains uneaten, causing several problems. For example, the uneaten fallen bird seed can attract rats, mice or other vermin that may be destructive, annoying and even cause health problems.
The uneaten fallen bird feed can also damage lawns. For example, some bird feed may include certain seeds that can grow to become weeds. In addition, the fallen bird feed can accumulate in piles, which can prevent sunlight from reaching portions of the lawn and thus damage the grass. Further, when animals attempt to eat the bird seed on the ground, they may damage the turf. Accordingly, to protect one's lawn, one may be required to spend a significant amount of time cleaning up the fallen bird feed.
In addition to wasting time, conventional bird feeders may waste money. For example, rain or other conditions can rot the fallen bird feed—making the fallen bird feed unusable for refilling the bird feeder. Accordingly, users must purchase more bird seed to refill their bird feeders. Further, even if some of the fallen bird feed is not rotten, retrieving the usable bird feed can be tedious, difficult, and inefficient.